Landscape assessment is a sub-category of environmental assessment (or EIA) concerned with quality assessment of the landscape. Landscape quality is assessed either as part of a strategic planning process or in connection with a specific development which will have an impact on the landscape.

The term 'landscape assessment' can be used to mean either:

• a specifically visual assessment. This can also be described as a scenic quality assessment or a landscape character assessment
• a broader assessment of 'the landscape' in a geographical sense. This includes assessments of each aspect of the landscape: ecology, geology, hydrology, soils, settlement patterns, scenic quality, recreational quality etc.

Since landscape assessments are intended to help with the conservation and enhancement of environmental goods, it is usually necessary to have a fully geographical landscape assessment as a stage in the process of EIA and landscape planning.

See also

• Landscape architecture
• Collective landscape
• Environmental good